In the Christmas Cards
by EmAino
Summary: The Vegas crew celebrates the holidays.
1. Chapter 1

Author's note: Crimes of Passion is taking a little hiatus while I finish this...my belated XMas present to you guys, my fellow Las Vegas fans. Hope you all have a good holiday season and a great new year.

* * *

In the Christmas Cards

* * *

Chapter One

* * *

"There is no way in Hell that he's paying us enough to do this." Mike Cannon grumbled as he and Danny McCoy carried a big blue spruce tree onto the main floor of the Montecito Resort and Casino. The bald, black man shrugged as he noticed his co-worker glaring at him. 

"Would you quit your bitching?" a weary Danny requested as the two men finally set the tree down in a waiting stand. Sighing, the former Marine ran a slow hand through his short, brown hair. "You heard Ed and Casey. They want these things up by the end of the day."

"Okay," Mike nodded, accepting that fact. "So, where in the hell is our maintenance crew?"

"I'm going to guess that they're all off doing one of the other billion tasks we have to do around here." Danny shrugged, "Now, do you want to tighten or do you want to hold?"

"I'll tighten." Mike replied, dropping the floor and crawling under the tree in an instant. Danny was about to question why when their employer, Ed Deline, strolled up.

"What the hell are you two monkeys doing?" the blue-eyed, stern, older man demanded, stopping right in front of Danny. "I set you guys on tree duty an hour ago."

"There's snow up in Tahoe." Mike offered from where he lay on the floor. "The truck didn't get here until just now."

"Well, okay," an accepting Ed nodded, causing an anxious Danny to breath a sigh of relief. However, the next time Ed spoke, the usual anger was back in his voice. "Then, what the hell have you two gentleman been doing for the past hour?"

"Uh…" Danny stammered, unsure of what to say.

"Um…" an equally nervous Mike chipped in. "You boys better come up with a quick excuse," Ed advised, smiling at the power he held over his employees. "Because I'd hate to believe that it was actually you two, and not your evil twins, gawking at the ladies this whole time."

"Damn cameras." Mike whispered to himself.

"What was that, Michael?" a curious Ed asked, looking down at the black man's feet, which were sticking out from the tree.

"Nothing, Mr. D." Mike reassured with a smile.

"Better not have been." Ed sighed, rubbing his forehead wearily. He wondered what it was about dealing with Danny and/or Mike that nearly always made him feel like he needed a drink of alcohol.

"Hi, Daddy." the cheerful voice of Delinda Deline greeted as Ed's blonde-haired, perky daughter walked up. "Hey, guys."

"Delinda." Danny and Mike both greeted cordially.

"Hey, sweetheart." Ed smiled, leaning in and giving the woman a kiss on the cheek. Suddenly, he noticed a trio of white, sealed envelopes in the woman's hands. "What are those?"

"The names for Secret Santa." Delinda grinned, handing each of the men an envelope. "Mom drew names for everyone this morning." She held up a finger. "Remember, guys, no telling anyone who you have until the Christmas party."

"We know." Danny nodded, speaking for Ed and Mike.

"Okay, then." a still-grinning Delinda said as she whirled around. "Happy shopping!"

"I don't know about you guys," Mike remarked as he crawled out from under the now-tightened tree. "But I'm tearing this bad boy open."

"Might as well." an agreeing Ed shrugged, looking at Danny.

"Yeah." Danny agreed, tearing his envelope open and taking out the thin strip of paper waiting inside. The name "Sam" stared back at him in firm, black letters, causing the tall man to wince. The only thing that he really knew about Samantha Jane Marquez was that she loved to make his life miserable and that she could probably tell a kid that there was no Santa Claus with a straight face. Still, something about the raven-haired casino hostess appealed to him, which is probably why they had had a romantic relationship in the past.

Still standing next to Danny, Ed sighed deeply as he pulled the name "Mary" out of his envelope. While he didn't have the hatred that McCoy had for Marquez, he was equally as baffled as his protégé. Of all of his employees, the graying man probably knew the least about what Connell would even remotely want for Christmas. Deciding that he would just have to get his wife, Jillian's help on the matter, Deline sighed and stuffed his strip of paper into his pocket.

"You guys don't look too happy." Mike commented, looking at the two other men. A look of relief had been present on the African American man's face ever since he had seen the name Delinda Deline on his strip of paper. He felt that he had a pretty good idea of what to get Ed's bubbly daughter. "Not get the names you wanted?"

"You could say that." an honest Danny replied, wishing that he had drawn either Mary or Delinda's names.

"All right." a commanding Ed said, switching subjects. "You two, just get these trees up on the double, all right? I'm not paying you to just stand around and look at the girls all day."

"But, Ed," Danny smiled smugly, "technically, you don't pay us. Casey does."

Saying nothing, Ed just glared at his protégé with a look of possible murder gleaming in his narrow, blue eyes. Catching sight of it, Danny gulped nervously and quickly regretted his last statement.

"Come on, Mikey." he urged, shoving his co-worker along. "Let's get those trees up."

* * *

"No! No! No!" the shrill voice of Sam Marquez screamed, getting the attention of everyone in Mystique, the Montecito's premiere restaurant and nightclub. Smiling apologetically at the people around them, the faces of Sam's tablemates, Mary Connell and Delinda Deline, quickly turned red at their cohort's outburst. The raven-haired woman, however, was too focused on the white strip of paper in her hand. "Ed! How in the hell could I have drawn Ed?"

"Sam!" a firm Delinda scolded, "You weren't supposed to tell us who you got!" The blonde-haired woman shook her head. "That's the whole point of it being Secret Santa!"

"Yeah, I don't think that she cares about that." Mary commented, looking at Sam, who was still focused on the strip of paper in her hands. The red-haired woman felt fortunate that Mike's name had been inside her envelope, as she could always wheedle out of Danny, one of his closest friends and her best, what to get him.

"This is a nightmare!" Sam groaned, leaning back in her seat and dejectedly resting her arm over her eyes. A moment later, she suddenly dropped her arm, revealing a grin on her face. "Delinda sweetie…"

"Oh, no." Delinda shook her head, knowing that Sam wanted to switch.

"But you already have to get him something!" Sam pointed out with the rare sound of pleading in her voice. "Come on, Dee. Please?"

"No, Sam." Delinda replied firmly, shaking her head again. The blonde-haired woman was quite content with her name, Danny, and wasn't about to shop for two presents for her father. "What fun would it be if I had Daddy's name?"

"I suppose you have a point." a reluctant Sam admitted before turning towards Mary with a smile.

"Don't even try it." Mary warned, setting down her glass after taking a drink. She put her index finger up towards Sam. "It's not going to work."

"You two suck, you know that." Sam growled, putting her head down on the table. "You really, really suck."

To be continued...


	2. Chapter 2

Author's notes: A million apologies for how late this is...I had hoped to be done earlier, but a bout of depression (thanks to my job) has kept me away from writing. As many of you said, hopefully, this will get done before next Christmas. :D Also, what happens to Danny at the end of the chapter is actually based on something that happened to my grandfather this Christmas. :D

* * *

Chapter Two

* * *

"No, Eddie." a firm Jillian Deline said, holding the phone with her shoulder while decorating cookies with both hands. The blonde-haired woman didn't know why she was so surprised to get a phone call from her husband, begging for her help in Christmas shopping for another female. Had it not been for her, Delinda probably would have grown up never having gotten a Christmas present. 

"Come on, Jill." Ed tried to beg, safely hidden with the confines of his private office at the Montecito. The former CIA spook would rather die than have his employees spot him in such a state. "You know that I'm not good at this sort of thing."

"Whose name did you draw?" Jillian sighed wearily.

"Mary."

"Well," Jillian suggested gently, grabbing the phone with one hand. "Why don't you ask Danny what you should get her? I'm sure that he'll understand and be more than happy to give you a few ideas." A smile crossed her face and she drummed her free hand on the counter. "By the way, I was going to head down to the Forum Shops this afternoon to get the kids' Christmas presents. I saw this brown coat at The Gap that would be just perfect for Danny." She paused for a brief moment. "And don't even tell me not to get him clothes, Eddie. I've seen the way he dresses outside of work."

"I wasn't going to say anything." Ed lied, mentally questioning Jillian's decision to get Danny, Mary, Sam and Mike a present. Then again, he thought, she doesn't have to make the money; just spend it. "So, what is my beautiful wife doing?"

"What you never do." Jillian replied, "Cooking, cleaning…" As she trailed off, she took a moment to sigh and close her eyes. "Dealing with the revelation that my mother-in-law is planning on spending the holidays with us."

"What!" a stunned Ed exclaimed, nearly jumping out of his chair at the mention of his mother.

* * *

"There!" Mike exclaimed, wiping sweat off of his brow. The African American man stared at the tree in front of him. "The last tree is up and ready for the decorating." 

"But that doesn't do us any good if the lights don't want to work." Danny reminded from where he was sitting nearby, attempting to get a string of lights to glow. Sighing and throwing the lights aside, the brown-haired, former Marine looked at his partner. "Ed and Casey aren't paying us enough to do this."

"Ho ho ho!" Casey Manning, the Montecito's owner said as if on cue. The dark-haired man their age smiled down at Danny. "Sounds like someone doesn't want their holiday bonus."

"Well, I didn't say that." Danny chuckled, getting to his feet.

"You guys are doing a good job," an approving Casey commented, looking around the casino floor. "The trees are looking good." Suddenly spotting Sam, his ex-wife, on the casino floor, the Montecito's owner smiled. "Excuse me, guys."

"So, what do you want to do about the lights?" Mike asked, looking at his friend.

"Well," Danny replied, stroking his chin. "I guess that one of us could run to a store and pick up some more." As an idea hit him, McCoy sighed heavily. "Or I could check my dad's things, and see if he's got a useable string."

"You sure, man?" a concerned Mike asked, knowing the pain his friend had to be feeling as this was the first Christmas he would spend without his father. "I mean, I could just run to the store, and…"

"I'll be fine, Mike." Danny reassured, clapping an appreciative hand on his friend's shoulder. "Besides, I was going to look for stuff for my place anyway."

"All right." Mike nodded, "You will let me know if you change your mind, right?"

"Without a doubt." a smiling Danny nodded back, "Thanks, Mike."

* * *

"Merry Christmas, Samantha." Casey whispered, sneaking up behind the dark-haired casino host and wrapping his arms around her. 

"More like bah humbug." Sam sighed, pulling away from her ex-husband instantly. With a glare, the brunette turned to face the smiling man. "What in the hell are you doing here, Casey?"

"Besides the fact that I own the place?" Casey grinned, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"There are plenty of other places in the casino." Sam pointed out as she started to walk away from him.

"Oh, come on, Sam!" Casey replied, following her. "Don't be like that!" Noticing that the woman was just under a sprig of mistletoe that someone had hung, Manning suddenly had an idea. "SAM!"

"What?" a curious Sam asked, stopping and turning around to face him.

"Merry Christmas." Casey smiled before leaning in and giving her a kiss on the lips.

"What in the hell?" Sam growled, pushing Casey away at the first opportunity. She narrowed her brown eyes, looking ready to kill. "What was that?"

"That, my dear, was tradition." Casey chuckled, pointing upwards at the mistletoe.

"That was desperate." a still angry Sam corrected, stomping past him.

"Don't be such a wet blanket!" Casey encouraged with a smile, watching her walk off.

* * *

Sinking down to the floor of the storage unit, Danny sighed and wiped his brow wearily. He had gone through box after box after box, and still hadn't found anything Christmas-related. He had even put in a call to Mary to make sure that the decorations hadn't been mistakenly sold at the estate sale. On the verge of giving up, the brown-haired man turned his gaze upwards. 

"Dad?" he said quietly, "You know, if you're up there, I'd kind of like some help finding these lights." Laughing at himself, McCoy shook his head. "Yeah, right. What the hell am I thinking?"

Hearing a crash, Danny immediately got to his feet and looked around. Everything inside the unit looked the same, except for a box Danny had dismissed as empty because it felt light and didn't make a sound when shook. It had mysteriously toppled onto the floor from the pile the frustrated McCoy had set it on earlier.

"No way." Danny shook his head, walking over to the box. "There's no possible way."

Sure enough, a neatly coiled up string of Christmas lights lay inside the box as well as some other Christmas decorations. Chuckling in disbelief, Danny looked around him.

"Thanks, Dad."

To be continued...


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Notes: I know that I'm getting a lump of coal in my stocking next Christmas for not having this done by now...and Danny-muse will have one too for being a little jerk and refusing to cooperate. Anyway, thank you all for being so patient, and I'll hopefully get the next chapter done soon.**

* * *

**Chapter Three

* * *

"Hi Daddy." a cheerful Delinda beamed as she literally bounced into her father's office at the Montecito a few days later. As the graying man looked up from where he had set the phone down, the younger woman could see a tired look in his blue eyes. "Tired?" 

"I've just spent the past…" Deline sighed, trailing off as he checked his watch. "Five hours convincing your grandmother not to come up here for Christmas in order to save your mother's and my sanity." He smiled weakly at his daughter. "How do you think I'm feeling?"

"Poor daddy." Delinda sympathized, walking over and hugging Ed lightly. "You should really take a break. You've certainly earned one after working so hard."

"What do you want, sweetie?" Ed grinned, picking up on a fishy tone to his daughter's voice.

"Your credit card." an honest Delinda answered, "I was going to do some shopping."

"I'm sorry, sweetheart." Ed sighed deeply, looking at his daughter. "But I thought that you worked here, so you made your own money to do your own shopping with." He motioned with his hands. "Emphasis on the your own."

"If you give me your credit card," Delinda smiled, "I'll pick something out for Mom and your name."

"Nice try." Ed smiled, stifling a chuckle.

"Oh, come on, Daddy." Delinda whined as the pair heard footsteps. Ed looked over to see Danny standing just inside the door. "Please?"

"What's she whining about now?" Danny sighed heavily, throwing himself onto one of the chairs in the room.

"Do that again, and I'm pulling the chair out from under you." Ed warned, disapproving of the way his protégé had sat down.

"Sorry." Danny apologized, shrugging his shoulders.

"Somebody doesn't seem to be too full of the Christmas spirit." Delinda noticed, grinning. Slowly, she walked over and sat down on Danny's lap. "Somebody find out that they're on the naughty list?"

"Depends on your definition of naughty." Danny winked.

"Excuse me!" Ed exclaimed loudly to remind the pair that he was still in the room and not going anywhere. Sighing, the blue-eyed man stood up, reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. "Promise me that you won't spend too much?" He held out his credit card. "And don't get anything for your mother or my name, all right? I want to pick those out myself."

"Thank you, Daddy." Delinda squealed, kissing her father as she took the card into her hands. "Bye, Danny."

"Bye." Danny said, putting a hand up as Delinda left the office. He smiled at Ed as the door shut behind the blonde-haired woman. "Remind me never to have kids…especially girls."

"Is there some reason you're in here and not on the casino floor?" Ed inquired, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"On break." Danny grinned.

"I see." Ed nodded, sitting down on his desk. Suddenly, his voice became more concerned. "How are you holding up?"

"What do you mean?" a curious Danny asked, scrunching his brow.

"With the holidays and all of that." Ed clarified, "I remember the first Christmas without my old man…" He shook his head. "Rough times."

"I'm fine, Ed." Danny waved off, not wanting to think about the pain he admittedly had been feeling. "Really."

"Okay." Ed nodded, knowing that Danny was probably lying. "Jillian wanted me to make sure that you know that you're invited to Christmas dinner." He paused for a moment. "All of you kids are."

"I know." Danny smiled before shaking his head. "I wouldn't miss Jillian's cooking for the world. Remember those stuffed mushrooms she made last year?"

"No, I don't actually." a stern Ed replied, narrowing his eyes. "Because I seem to remember you and Mike the stomach eating all of them by yourselves." He waved a finger at Danny. "You two idiots try that again this year, and I swear I'll…"

"I think my break's over." a nervous Danny said, getting up.

"Danny, wait!" Ed sighed, putting his hand up. "What do you think Mary wants for Christmas?"

"Mary?" a puzzled Danny repeated.

"Yeah, I got her name in the whole Secret Santa thing…" Ed started, motioning with his hand.

"And you don't know what to get her." Danny finished, nodding his head. With a smile, he got up and threw his arm around his mentor. "Ed, let me introduce you to Mary-us Connell-us, the most difficult species known to man to shop for." Pausing, he sighed and looked at the floor. "Well, she might be the second."

"Who'd you get?" a curious Ed asked.

"Sam." Danny replied, glancing up quickly. "Any ideas on her?"

"Aside from Casey's head on a platter?" Ed laughed, shaking his head.

* * *

"What do you want for Christmas?" Danny asked a few hours later as he worked his way over to Mary's side as the red-haired woman wandered the casino floor. 

"I thought we promised not to get each other anything." Connell replied, stopping and looking at him.

"We did," a shaky Danny admitted, wondering how to explain he was asking for Ed. "But what if I wanted to get you something, what would you want?"

"Something besides a pet rock." a teasing Mary said, starting to walk away again.

"Oh, come on!" Danny groaned, rolling his eyes before following her. "I was four, Mary! It seemed like a great present at the time!" Not being able to help himself, he did chuckle at the memory. "Even if it was just a rock with magic marker on it."

"The eyes were the cutest part." Mary smiled, "Well, besides, the lightning bolts."

"The lightning bolts made it look cool." Danny shrugged.

"So, who has my name?" Mary asked, looking over at her friend.

"Ed." Danny replied as they paused once more.

"Thought so." Mary nodded as a puzzled look found its way to Danny's face. "Mike would have just spied on me until…" The redhead paused as her eyes traveled upward. "Oh, no."

"What?" a curious Danny asked, following Mary's gaze right to the mistletoe that Sam and Casey had found themselves under earlier. "Oh." Embarrassed, he looked at Mary. "You know, we don't have to…"

"It is tradition." an equally embarrassed Mary shrugged, "We'll probably piss off some spirits or something if we don't." Smiling, she looked away. "Besides, it's not like we haven't done worse."

"But that was…" Danny started, finding himself interrupted as Mary's lips made contact with his own.

For a brief moment, both friends found themselves flashing back to times when their relationship had been something more than a friendship. Something that both of them wondered why it had disappeared when they both wanted it. Thinking about how awkward this moment and their relationship was, both Danny and Mary pulled away quickly.

"Well…" Danny started with a rare redness in his cheeks.

"It's tradition to kiss under the mistletoe." an equally embarrassed Mary said, looking at the floor. "Perfectly normal."

"Yeah, normal." Danny nodded in agreement.

"Just tell Ed that I'll like anything he picks out, okay?" Mary smiled, "I'm sure that he'll come up with something other than a pet rock."

"You're not nice." Danny replied, teasingly glaring at her.

* * *

"Sam!" a surprised Jillian exclaimed, opening the door to the Deline house after hearing a knock on the door. "What brings you out here? Is there a problem at the Montecito?" 

"Sort of." Sam admitted, shrugging her shoulders. The raven-haired woman hated asking others for help, but knew that she had no other choice. "I need your advice on something."

"Well, come and sit down." Jillian smiled, gently putting her hands on the younger woman's arm and leading her into the living room. "What seems to be the problem?"

"I drew Ed's name for Secret Santa." Sam replied bluntly as she plopped down on the Delines' couch. "And I have no idea what to get him."

"Well, Ed is a hard man to shop for." Jillian nodded, sitting down in one of the overstuffed armchairs across from the couch. She shook her blonde-haired head. "He used to return practically everything I got him when we first got married, or it would sit in the closet unused."

"So, you don't have any ideas?" a defeated Sam assumed.

"A million." Jillian grinned, "Which one do you want to use?"

* * *

"You know," Mike stated as he noticed Danny leaning back in his chair and staring at the surveillance room's ceiling. "You keep sitting in that thing the wrong way and it's going to break, man." 

"Least of my problems right now." Danny sighed, not looking away.

"Yeah, that moment with Mary and the mistletoe was pretty awkward." Mike agreed with a nod.

"You saw that!" a stunned Danny exclaimed, sitting up so fast that he nearly fell out of his chair.

"We've got a camera on that area 24/7." a gray-haired man named Mitch grinned from where he sat on the other side of Mike. "Good, cheap entertainment."

"For those who have no lives." a humiliated Danny replied, shaking his head.

"At least, I've never made it look like I've never kissed a girl." Mike teased as Ed walked into the room.

"Now, see," Ed replied, putting a hand on Danny's shoulder to restrain him from going after Mike. "You kissing a girl, Michael, would be a sign of the apocalypse."

"That's cold, Mr. D." Mike grimaced, taking a moment to glare at a snickering Mitch. Danny didn't make a sound, but simply had a wide grin on his face.

"You deserved it." Ed reassured before waving his hand at Mitch and Mike. "Now, if you two idiots would stop watching the makeout cam and actually get to work…" He squeezed Danny's shoulder. "You, my office."

"Why?" a puzzled Danny asked, looking up at his boss. He was forced to wince as a silent Ed clamped down harder on his shoulder. "Okay, okay."

To be continued...


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

* * *

"Here we go." Ed smiled, releasing Danny as the pair entered his office. The gray-haired man closed the door behind them to give them privacy while the former Marine rubbed his shoulder. "We can talk in here." 

"Planning on getting me a shoulder replacement for Christmas, Ed?" Danny asked, making small circles with his shoulder as the older man walked past him and sat down in his chair.

"Nah," Ed shook his head, keeping a smile on his face. "I just like to remind you who's in charge around here from time to time." He folded his hands on his chest. "So, what did you find out from Mary?"

"Oh, she just said that she'll like anything you pick out." Danny replied, sitting down in the chair opposite the desk. He noticed Ed's smile turn into a frown. "What?"

"You weren't supposed to tell her that I had her name, idiot." Ed sighed as he shook his head. "Hence the secret part of Secret Santa." He leaned back in his chair. "You couldn't have just said that you were curious yourself?"

"Well, I was going to," Danny replied, plopping unceremoniously down on the chair in front of Ed's desk.

"Sit down right!" an interrupting Ed roared.

"But Mary and I promised each other years ago that we wouldn't get each other anything for Christmas." Danny continued, sitting down again to satisfy Ed. The brown-haired man paused for a moment. "Not that we keep that promise, but…"

"So, you really could have said that you were asking for yourself." a grinning Ed pointed out, "Since both of you know that neither of you keep that promise."

"I…" Danny stammered before pausing for a moment. "You know, I didn't even think about that."

"Ah, don't sweat it, kid." Ed smiled widely, "There's a reason that you're the looks of the operation and not the brains."

"Hey!" an angry Danny replied after taking a moment to think about that comment.

* * *

"I wouldn't worry about it too much, Mare." Delinda comforted a week later, analyzing yet another shirt. Seeing as how business around the Montecito was slow, the two women had decided to leave work early to do some holiday shopping. "Daddy occasionally comes up with really great gifts." Scrunching her brow, the blonde-haired woman held the shirt up to Mary. "What do you think?" 

"Who's it for?" a curious Mary asked, looking up from the shirt she was looking at.

"Danny." Delinda shrugged, "I guess since Sam and, in a roundabout way, Daddy already broke the Secret Santa code, it's all right for me to fess up." She twirled the shirt, which was brown and white paisley-patterned, around. "So, can you see Danny wearing this?"

"No." an honest Mary shook her head, "But it'd look good on Mike."

"It would look good on Mike." Delinda agreed, nodding her head.

"Give it here." Mary smiled, taking the shirt from Delinda. "It just so happens that I've got Mike."

"So that leaves me and Sam unaccounted for." Delinda realized before a horrified expression appeared on her face. "Oh, no."

"What?" a puzzled Mary asked, looking at her friend.

"You, Sam, Daddy, and I have already revealed our names." Delinda explained, putting a hand to her forehead. "Danny and Mike haven't."

"Meaning one of them has Sam, and the other has you." Mary nodded.

* * *

"Danny!" Mike called, stopping in front of a store. McCoy, who hadn't noticed his friend had stopped, hurried back to his side. Much like Delinda and Mary, the boys had decided to do some Christmas shopping. "What do you think? Delinda?" 

"Victoria's Secret, Mikey?" Danny chuckled, keeping his eyes firmly planted on the nearby risqué window display. "Do you want Ed to kick your ass?"

"Yeah, you're right." Mike shuddered, continuing on. "He'd probably take the lights off of the tree and strangle me with them." He shook his head. "Why do women have to be so hard to shop for?"

"Because they're women?" Danny shrugged, putting his hands in his jacket pocket. "Personally, I think that they were just put on the planet to confuse us." Suddenly, someone ran past the brown-haired, former Marine, grabbing his arm as they passed. "Hey!" Recognizing the red hair, a grin appeared on his face as he caught his balance. "Mary! What the hell was that for?"

"No reason in particular." Mary giggled, stopping in front of the guys. "Doing some shopping?"

"Trying to." Mike replied, holding his hands so that Mary could see the lack of bags being held.

"Same here." Danny added, copying Mike's gesture.

"Hmmm." Mary nodded, "Well, Sam and Delinda are hard to shop for…"

"How did you know that I had…?" both Danny and Mike started.

"Never mind." Mary waved off, "Just consider me Santa's little helper. So, which one of you has Delinda?"

"That'd be me." Mike replied, putting his hand up.

"Okay, Mr. Cannon." Mary smiled before pointing towards one end of the mall. "You'll be happy to know that Ms. Deline was just in here earlier, and seemed highly interested in that Bath and Bodyworks over there." She winked. "Rumor has it that her favorite scent is cucumber melon."

"Thanks." an appreciative Mike said, starting off that way. Pausing briefly, he turned around to face Danny and Mary with a grin. "Just don't get caught under any more mistletoe."

"You…" a growling Danny started, taking a step toward him. However, Mary's hand restrained his arm and Mike vanished before he could do anything. Sighing, he turned to his life-long friend. "Sorry about Mike being an ass, Mare."

"It's okay." Mary winked before whispering. "I've got his name, so I can pay him back later."

"Hell hath no fury like Mary Connell scorned." Danny laughed.

"So, you have Sam, huh?" Mary asked, causing Danny to nod. "I'm surprised that you didn't come to me for help sooner."

"Well, I thought about asking you," an honest Danny admitted, "But then, the whole mistletoe fiasco happened, and…"

"So, any ideas?" Mary interrupted, not really wanting to talk about that.

"None." Danny shook his head before adjusting the baseball cap on his head. "Sam's probably harder to shop for than you are."

"Hey!" Mary rebutted, "I am not that hard to shop for if you just pay attention." Grinning, she crossed her arms across her chest. "And it could have been worse, Danny. Just imagine if you had drawn Monica."

"Oh, God." Danny winced, remembering the bitchy former owner of the Montecito. "That would have been a living hell." He shook his head violently to get the image out. "So, any ideas on Sam?"

"I'm sure that I can come up with something." Mary smiled.

* * *

"I didn't know soap could have so many flavors." Mike commented to himself as he walked into the fragrant Bath and Bodyworks Mary had suggested. Shelves and shelves of various products surrounded the bald African American man, who was still confused as to what to get Delinda. "Shower gel…Body Fragrance…Body Scrub…what the hell is the difference?" 

"Mike?" a surprised Jillian asked, walking over.

"Huh?" an equally surprised Mike said, turning around. "Oh, hey, Mrs. D.! What are you doing here?"

"Picking up some things." Jillian shrugged before smiling. "What about you?" She winked teasingly at him. "I didn't peg you as the type to shop here."

"Oh, I don't." Mike reassured, chuckling. "I don't. I'm just picking out a Christmas present for my Secret Santa name."

"Really?" an interested Jillian said, "Maybe I can help you with that. Who do you have?" Seeing that Mike was about to protest, seeing as how the Secret Santa was supposed to be a closely guarded secret, the older woman smiled widely. "Relax. I've already heard from Delinda and Eddie that it's apparently not-so-Secret Santa this year."

"Really?" Mike blinked, not aware of this fact himself.

"Apparently, Sam started it by blurting out to Delinda and Mary that she had Ed." Jillian nodded, "Then, Ed told Danny that he had Mary so, of course, that got back to Mary's ear."

"And Danny and I both told each other who we had." Mike sighed, shaking his head. "Next year, why don't we make the drawing public and just save us the trouble?"

"Or everyone just buy themselves a gift." Jillian laughed.

"Yeah." Mike chuckled in agreement, "Anyway, to answer your question, I have Delinda." The African American man looked back at the shelf. "Mary gave me the hint to come in here, but she didn't tell me that there's about two million different names for soap."

"Well, as Delinda has to explain to her father every time she spends a lot here," Jillian smiled, putting a hand on Mike's shoulder. "All of these products are actually different." Seeing that Mike was still confused, she winked. "It's a woman thing."

"Must be." Mike shrugged.

* * *

"No…no…" a stunned Danny muttered as he watched Mary's car pass his and cross the finish line. Leaning back against the seat, the brown-haired man winced. "Damn it!" 

"What was our bet, McCoy?" a victorious Mary smiled as the words "Game Over" flashed on the two screens in front of them. "Loser buys lunch?"

"Yeah, yeah." Danny sighed as Mary got up from her seat. He flashed the red-haired woman a grin. "Remind me not to let you win next time."

"Let me win?" Mary scoffed, shaking her head at her childhood friend. "Please! If that had been case, you wouldn't have let me lap you." Teasingly, she gave him a disapproving look. "You're just a sore loser, Daniel Ryan McCoy."

"Possibly." a chuckling Danny admitted, deciding to switch subjects. "So, where do you want to eat, champ?"

"I don't know." Mary said, taking a moment to think. "You want to just leave and go to Lucky Burger? Like we used to when we were kids?"

"That sounds good." Danny nodded, finally getting up from his seat. "You know, this is nice."

"What is?" a curious Mary asked as the pair started out of the arcade.

"Us just hanging out like this." Danny clarified, "We don't do it enough."

"Yeah, we don't." Mary nodded in agreement.

"Hold on a second." Danny grinned, putting a restraining hand on Mary's shoulder as his brown eyes spotted something. He suddenly searched his pocket for some change.

"What are you doing?" a curious Mary asked, looking at her friend.

"Making this just like when we were kids." Danny winked as he headed over to a nearby machine packed with stuffed animals and the like. "Which one do you want?"

"Danny, you don't have to…" Mary started.

"I want to." a reassuring Danny replied, turning his attention back to the game. "So, what'll it be?"

To be continued...


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Notes: Another chapter, another lame excuse from me as to why it's so late. LOL. I transferred to a division at work this summer that involved a lot of travelling...I mean, if I was home for more than three days at a time, it was a miracle. While this schedule was nice for the wallet, it left little time to write. Hopefully, now that I'm back on my usual schedule, I'll get these chapters out a lot faster. I want you to thank you all for waiting so patiently for me to update, and special thanks to Leah (Swiperfox) and Elyse (VegasSinner) for encouraging me and nagging every time they saw me online. :D Next chapter should be the last one. :D

* * *

Chapter Five

* * *

"Edward Melvin Deline!" the threatening voice of Jillian boomed as the blonde-haired, older woman walked into the kitchen a few nights later. A gingerbread man was being held halfway in between the cookie sheet and her husband's mouth, and the gray-haired culprit had a caught look in his eyes. "How many times have I told you that those are for the Christmas party tomorrow?" 

"That's the thing, sweetheart." Ed replied, quickly thinking of an excuse to eat the cookie. "I'm really not comfortable serving these without checking their quality first…"

"Are you doubting my baking ability?" Jillian asked with a raised eyebrow, not letting Ed weasel himself a cookie so easily. "Maybe I should have married some other C.I.A. agent like your friend…what's his name?" She paused for a moment to think. "Jack Keller!"

"DON'T SAY THAT NAME!" Ed shouted, wincing at the mere mention of his former partner. Sighing, he put the cookie back on the cookie sheet. "God, you made me lose my appetite."

"Good." a victorious Jillian smiled, walking up to Ed and hugging him. "So, where's my busy little elf been?" She quickly kissed his cheek. "You were supposed to be home an hour ago."

"Eh," a teasing Ed winked, putting his hands on Jillian's waist. "I don't know how to tell you this honey, but Sarasvarti and I are having an affair."

"Good." Jillian smiled, deciding to give it right back to her husband. "Then, you won't mind that Mitch and I are doing the same." As both Delines laughed, the woman teasingly punched her husband in the arm. "So, where have you been?"

"Arranging a little surprise for the kids." Ed shrugged, moving past his wife and setting his coat down on a nearby chair. He started to loosen his tie with one hand. "That's all I'm going to say."

"And Mary's gift?" Jillian asked, folding her arms across her chest and leaning up against a nearby doorway.

"Got that taken care of." Ed replied, sitting down in a chair.

"Need me to wrap it?" Jillian offered, knowing that her husband's wrapping skills weren't the best.

"What kind of idiot can't wrap his own presents?" Ed shook his head.

* * *

"Danny?" an annoyed Mary said, throwing down her reel of ribbon. "DANNY!" 

"What?" Danny asked, tearing his eyes away from the TV screen in front of him, where his imaginary self stood facing an army of now frozen aliens. Catching the glare Mary was shooting him, the former Marine spread his arms out innocently. "What?"

"I'm not going to be around to wrap your presents for you forever, Danny." Mary explained, shaking her head. "And you swore to me last year that you'd actually pay attention and learn something this year, so your wrapping wouldn't look like a 3 year old did it."

"I'm beginning to think that gift cards are the way to go." Danny replied, setting his Xbox controller down. It was clear that between video games and wrapping presents, McCoy would have chosen the former without a second thought. Besides, it had become a holiday tradition to have Mary wrap his presents for him, and having Mary around was never a bad thing. Sighing, the former Marine laid down on the one area of his bed that wasn't covered by wrapping paper and bows. "Not so much hassle."

"But not as personal." a smiling Mary countered, putting a bright red bow on Danny's head. "There you go!"

"Hey!" Danny exclaimed, immediately taking it off.

"What?" Mary laughed as Danny threw the now-crumpled bow at her. "It's a good look for you." A loud knock was suddenly heard coming from the front door. "Expecting someone?"

"No." a curious Danny replied, getting to an elbow.

"DANNY MCCOY!" the loud voice of Sam must have echoed throughout the apartment building. "YOU ANSWER THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW!"

"Wow." Mary commented as she and Danny immediately rushed into the living room. "Sam sounds like she's in one of her moods."

"Wonder why." Danny replied, opening the door before Sam knocked itdown. "Sam?"

"Where is it?" the brunette casino hostess demanded, pushing past the much taller man.

"What are you…" a confused Danny asked as Sam rushed over to the nearby Christmas tree and started shaking every single present underneath it. "Sam? SAM!"

"Yeah, I don't think she's hearing you." Mary commented, slightly chuckling at the bewildered look on Danny's face and the fact that Sam had apparently reverted to an impatient 4 year old.

"MARY!" Sam exclaimed gleefully, turning around. "Thank, God!" As she slowly got up from the floor, Danny immediately dove in to survey what damage she had done. "I mean, you had to have helped him pick it out!"

"Pick what out?" Danny asked innocently from under the tree.

"Nice try," Sam smiled, folding her arms across her chest. "But I made Mike talk and he told me that you had my name!"

"Don't blame him." Danny sighed, knowing that, when she wanted to, Sam could be a force to be reckoned with. Getting up from the floor, he shook his head. "Well, I don't think that you broke anything."

"I'll try harder next time." Sam replied, not missing a beat. Her brow suddenly furrowed and she turned towards Mary. "What are you doing here anyway?" She pointed fingers at both Danny and Mary. "Are you two thinking about getting back together or something?"

"What?" Danny replied, looking from Sam to Mary. "No!"

"Not at all." Mary added, shaking her head. "I was just helping him wrap some things."

"What kind of idiot can't wrap his own presents?" Sam teased, turning towards Danny. She paused for a moment as a smile appeared on her face. "Oh, right. Forgot who we were talking about."

"Okay, time for you to leave." an offended Danny replied, picking Sam up and throwing her over his shoulder. As a grin appeared on his face, he winked over at Mary, who started snickering.

"Hey!" a shocked, angry Sam exclaimed, pounding Danny's back with her fists. "Danny! You idiot! I'm wearing a dress! Put me down!"

"Like there's a man in Vegas who hasn't seen your underwear." Danny scoffed.

"Hey!" Sam replied, hitting him extra hard.

"Never a camera around when you need one." Mary giggled.

"DAAAAANNNY!" Sam continued as Danny carried her to the doorway. "I swear to God that I'm telling Ed all about this! Put me down!" As the laughing, taller man set her down on the opposite side of the doorway, she took a swipe at him. Fortunately for Danny, he managed to duck in time. "You…"

"Say goodbye, Sammy." Danny managed to say through his laughter as he shut the front door on her. He fell back against it and sighed in relief as Sam's footsteps were heard making a hasty retreat. "Next year, definitely gift cards."

* * *

"Merry Christmas Eve!" a jovial Mike greeted as Danny walked into the surveillance room the next morning. 

"You mean," Danny smiled, clapping his friend's hand in a high five. "Merry Day Before We Get a Two Day Break?"

"Yeah." Mike laughed in agreement.

"Lucky bastards." Mitch grumbled from nearby, not taking his eyes off of the computer screen.

"What?" Danny asked, still smiling. "You got the first couple days of Hanukkah off."

"Yeah." Mike agreed, looking at the wheelchair-bound man. "It's not our fault that Mr. D. didn't think that you needed all eight."

"Like he also didn't think that you needed additional time off for both Christmas and Kwanzaa?" Danny reminded, turning towards Mike.

"Mr. D. just doesn't understand that some of us like to be in touch with our heritage." Mike shrugged as Danny sat down in the chair next to him.

"Now, see, with anyone else, I would buy that." Danny replied, putting his finger up. "But, unfortunately, Mikey, I know you and I know that you're just saying that to get time off."

"Yeah, yeah." Mike waved off, accepting defeat.

"Sorry, man." Danny laughed, shrugging his shoulders.

"Uh oh." a worried Ed commented, walking over to the trio with a cup of coffee in hand. "Danny's in a good mood." He turned towards Mike for explanation. "Why is he in a good mood?"

"Because Mike's a dumbass?" Mitch offered before joining in Danny's laughter.

"Did I ask you?" Ed replied, looking at Mitch.

"You sure that I can't hit him?" Mike asked, narrowing his eyes at both Danny and Mitch, who were finishing off the last strains of laughter left in them.

"Which one?" Ed asked, setting down his coffee.

"Either." Mike shrugged.

"No, because you can't hit a man in a wheelchair," Ed shook his head, gesturing to Mitch. "And..."

"Ow!" Danny exclaimed, feeling Ed's hand forcibly collide with the back of his head. He rubbed the point of impact. "Mother..."

"Smacking him upside the head is my job." Ed smiled at Mike before turning towards Danny. "I'm sorry, kid. Did I hit you a little too hard?"

"Yeah." Danny replied, dropping his hand. The brown-haired man quickly regretted that decision as he felt Ed smack him again. "OW! Ed? What the hell..."

"A little too hard wasn't hard enough." a nonchalant Ed shrugged, grabbing his coffee and heading towards his office.

"Freaking Scrooge." Danny muttered under his breath, once again rubbing the sore spot and trying to ignore Mike and Mitch's roars of laughter.

* * *

"Wow!" a surprised Delinda remarked, sitting down at her, Sam and Mary's usual table at Mystique for lunch that afternoon. The red-haired woman and the brunette were already sitting, and a present sat just in front of Marquez. "Santa came early for someone." 

"Bah humbug." Sam replied, laying her head down on the table.

"It's from Casey." Mary explained quietly to Delinda.

"Oh." Delinda nodded, understanding her friend's predicament.

"She's not sure if she should open it or burn it." Mary continued.

"On one hand," Sam sighed, raising her head up. "it's from a multi-millionaire." Thinking about her ex-husband, the casino hostess's hateful eyes narrowed into slits. "On the other hand, it's from him."

"That is a toughie." a sympathetic Delinda nodded.

"What is?" a nosy Danny asked, walking over to the three women. The former Marine lieutenant held a small bag of ice to the back of his head.

"What happened to you?" Mary wondered, seeing the ice.

"Ed apparently decided that I should be Danny, the black and blue-headed reindeer." Danny shrugged, causing a fit of giggles to wash over Sam. He narrowed his own eyes at her. "Oh, bite me."

"No way." a teasing Sam grinned, stifling her laughter. "You'd love that way too much."

"I also don't think that Danny has an extra 50 bucks on hand." Mary laughed as Danny took the ice off the back of his head and set it on the table.

"Hey!" Sam exclaimed, playfully swatting at Mary.

"Thanks, Mare." Danny chuckled, winking at his best friend.

"You only charge 50?" a surprised Delinda asked, looking at Marquez.

"Shut up!" Sam ordered, throwing the present at Danny, who caught it.

"May I ask what..." Danny started, looking at the object in his hands.

"It's Casey's gift to Sam." Mary explained.

"Yeah." Sam continued, "And if it's lethal, no big loss if it does you in."

"Gee, thanks." a sarcastic Danny replied, rolling his eyes as he opened the gift and looked inside. "Whoa!"

"What is it?" an impatient Delinda and Sam asked together.

"Some serious ice!" Danny replied, holding up a diamond necklace.

"Okay." Casey commented as he walked over to the quartet. "Not the person I intended that for."

"Aw, come on, Case." Danny teased with a wide grin. "Don't you think we should let the girls in on our secret?"

"Not now, Danny." Casey smiled back, playing along.

"So, what the hell is this?" Sam demanded, not amused by the guys' charade. Her eyes narrowing into slits once more, she yanked the necklace away from Danny and shoved it into Casey's face.

"I think I hear Gunter calling me." Delinda excused herself, knowing that this wasn't going to be pretty.

"Yeah," Danny agreed, thinking the same thing. "Ed's going to be pissed if I don't hurry back."

After watching Delinda and Danny both rush off to wherever they where going, Sam and Casey silently turned to Mary.

"I'd..." the redhead stammered, trying to think of an excuse to leave herself. "I'd better go make sure that Ed doesn't kill Danny."

"So?" Sam demanded after her and Casey watched Mary run off.

"So?" Casey repeated, not sure what Sam was getting at.

"What are you trying to pull?" Sam clarified, gesturing to the necklace.

"What?" Casey shrugged, "I just thought that it'd be nice to get you a little something, Sammy."

"Yeah," Sam scoffed, not buying it. "Because you're such a sweetheart."

"Why is it so hard for you to accept that people can just be nice every once in awhile?" a curious Casey laughed.

"Heh," Sam chuckled herself, turning and walking away. "You haven't been in Vegas very long."

* * *

"Hey, Ed." Danny started to apologize as he walked into the older man's office. The brown-haired man paused upon realizing that the person behind the desk wasn't Deline. "Jillian?" 

"Hi, Danny." Mrs. Deline waved from Ed's usual seat.

"Where's..." Danny wondered, looking around.

"On the floor." Jillian sighed, leaning back in the desk chair. "Some sort of disturbance came up." The older woman's blue eyes focused in on the ice McCoy still held to the back of his head. "What's with the ice?"

"Well, I..." Danny started.

"Never mind." Jillian interrupted, waving the younger man off. "I'm sure that my husband is the one to blame."

"To blame for what?" a curious Ed asked, walking into the office. Upon noticing Danny, the older man paused and his blue eyes reflected sternness. "Where the hell have you been?"

"Eddie!" Jillian admonished, banging on the desk to get his attention.

"What?" a surprised Ed asked, turning to his wife.

"Call your mother." Jillian ordered, picking up the phone.

"I..." a fumbling Ed replied, pointing to the surveillance room. "I think that Mike's calling for me." He rushed out the door. "I'm coming, Mikey!"

"That man." Jillian shook her head as the door closed behind Ed. "I swear..."

"What..." Danny wondered, not sure of what he had just seen.

"I came here because I got tired of Bette calling me non-stop, trying to reach him." Jillian explained, shaking her head once more. "Just doesn't want to speak to his mother."

"Probably doesn't realize how lucky he is." Danny sighed heavily, thinking of his own mother and wishing that he had Ed's dilemma.

"Oh, Danny." Jillian put a hand over mouth, realizing her faux pas. "I'm so sorry!"

"It's okay." Danny smiled, waving her off.

"It must be hard this time of year." Jillian sympathized.

"It was her favorite." Danny revealed with a reminiscent twinkle in his eyes. "Day after Thanksgiving, she always made sure that we got both the lights and the tree up." He laughed and turned his gaze to the floor. "I don't know how Dad ever put up with it."

"Sounds like she was one hell of a lady." Jillian smiled.

"She was." Danny nodded in agreement.

To be continued...


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Notes: Well, it only took about a year, but this story has finally come to an end. :D I'm sorry that I dragged my butt on it, and I appreciate all of the kind reviews you've all given me. Now, it's back to work on "Crimes of Passion" and a few other fic ideas I've got. Once again, THANK YOU!

* * *

Chapter Six

* * *

"Mmm..." Mike commented through a mouth full of stuffed mushrooms. "These are delicious, Mrs. D." 

"Yeah." Danny nodded, his mouth also full.

"Hey! Prancer! Dancer!" Ed barked, standing next to his wife and watching the two younger men work their way through the snack table, seemingly sampling everything. "Leave some for the rest of us, would you?"

"Relax, Eddie." Jillian smiled, resting a hand on her husband's broad shoulders. She whispered into his ear. "After last year, I made sure to make a double recipe of everything."

"Still." Ed grinned, turning towards her. "Can't you let me beat the crap out of them just once? You could say that it's your Christmas present to me."

"Not on the carpet." Jillian shook her head, "We just had it cleaned, remember."

"Okay." Ed nodded, turning back towards the group. "Danny! Mike! I need to see you two outside!"

"Eddie!" Jillian admonished, smacking her husband and sending Danny and Mike into a fit of laughter.

"What?" Ed replied, spreading his arms out innocently and glaring at Danny and Mike.

"Sucks that Casey couldn't be here." Delinda commented, rejoining Sam and Mary in a nearby corner.

"Yeah." Sam said sarcastically before taking a big drink of her cocktail. "My heart is just breaking!"

"You did give him his invitation, didn't you?" Delinda asked, suddenly thinking of a possible reason why the Montecito's owner wasn't there and mentally berating herself for putting Sam in charge of inviting him.

"Why wouldn't I?" Sam chuckled, casually taking another drink.

"Sam!" Delinda admonished, putting her hands on her hips.

"Relax, Dee." Mary reassured with a smile. "I took care of it."

"You what?" Sam exclaimed, glaring at the redhead next to her.

"You really thought that he would buy that his invitation accidentally fell into your shredder?" an incredulous Mary replied, looking right back at the brunette.

"No." Sam admitted with a smile, "That's when I was going to tell him that it was no accident."

"Hey, Mary." Danny asked, walking over just as Connell was about to reply. "Can I borrow you for a minute?"

"Yeah." she nodded, following her childhood best friend out into the hallway. "What's up?"

"Here." Danny grinned, pulling out a small, perfectly wrapped box from a pocket inside his jacket. "Merry Christmas."

"Danny, you didn't have to..." Mary started, taking the box from him.

"I wanted to." Danny shrugged.

"It's not a pet rock, is it?" Mary teased, looking into the man's eyes.

"No." Danny laughed at the memory from their childhood. "No, it's something much nicer."

Still smiling at her best friend, Mary carefully unwrapped the gift and opened the small, velvet box inside. A golden locket shaped like a heart awaited her.

"Oh, Danny..." Mary started before trailing off.

"You like it?" Danny grinned, slowly reaching over and opening the locket for her. Inside was a picture of a much younger Danny and Mary along with two other boys. "Check out the inside. You're always saying that thinking about us, Greg and Luis makes you smile, right?"

"Thank you." a tearful Mary said, throwing her arms around him.

"Don't mention it." Danny replied, hugging her back and kissing the top of her head. "And before you ask, the ladies at the mall were more than happy to wrap it for me."

"I was going to say." Mary commented before the two of them started to laugh.

"Okay, ladies and..." Ed announced a few moments later as Danny and Mary walked back into room with the gold locket now around Mary's neck. A playful twinkle appeared in Deline's blue eyes. "Well, ladies..."

"Ouch." Danny winced at his employer's insult.

"That's cold, Mr. D." Mike added, exchanging glances with Danny.

"Don't like it? Well, you boys know where the door is." Ed shrugged, "Anyway, if I could have your attention for a moment, I believe it is time to exchange gifts." As they all took a seat on the couches and loveseats in the room, he turned to his wife. "You want to play Santa?"

"Why not?" Jillian smiled, grabbing the bag everyone had put their presents into at the start of the party. She reached into the bag and pulled out a small box. "Okay, this one is to Sam from Danny."

"It's awfully small." Sam commented as Jillian handed her the gift.

"Size doesn't count for everything." Danny shrugged, putting an arm around Mary.

"That's right, Danny." Sam teased, winking at him. "Keep telling yourself that."

"Oh!" Mike exclaimed, putting a hand over his mouth. "She roasted you, man!"

"Can I break that rule about not hitting women?" Danny asked, rolling his eyes and looking towards Ed.

"You could." Ed nodded, "But then I'd have to do the chivalrous thing and whoop your ass."

"Come on, Sam." Jillian said, trying to regain some order. "Just open it."

"Okay." Sam sighed, tearing off the wrapping paper and opening the small box inside. Her dark eyes widened in surprise. "Wow!" Pulling out a silver pocket-watch, she looked up at Danny. "Are you sure that you gave me the right gift?"

"Yeah." Danny nodded, "I mean you're always checking your cell-phone to see what time it is." He shrugged his shoulders. "So I thought you should have something nicer."

"Thanks." an appreciative Sam smiled.

"Don't mention it." Danny waved off, returning her grin.

"Wow." a stunned Delinda said.

"What's up, Dee?" a curious Mike asked, turning to look at the blonde-haired woman across from him.

"Sam and Danny aren't fighting for once." Delinda pointed out.

"That is remarkable." Ed agreed, nodding his head.

"Definitely something to savor." Mary also chimed in.

"Shut up!" Sam and Danny exclaimed in unison, glaring at those around them, who started laughing.

"Okay," Jillian said after everyone besides Danny and Sam had taken a moment to get their laughter under control. The older woman reached behind the gift bag for one of the presents that had been too big to put in. "This is from Ed to Mary."

"Wow." Mary commented, looking at the size of the gift. However, once she tore the wrapping paper off, the redhead was puzzled. "A suitcase?"

"That's only part of your present." Ed explained with a big smile on his face. "The other part is that, in a few days, the Montecito jet is taking you to Europe for a three-day, all expenses paid shopping spree."

"Nice." Danny nodded in approval.

"Very nice." Sam and Delinda agreed, both hoping that they could go along with Mary.

"Oh, my God." a quiet yet appreciative Mary said, getting up from her chair, walking over and hugging Ed. "Thank you, Ed."

"You're welcome, sweetheart." Ed replied, hugging her back.

"Honey," Jillian said, tapping a nearby Delinda on the arm to get her attention. With her other hand, she held a huge gift-basket filled with various bath soaps and whatnot. "This is from Mike to you."

"Oh, wow!" Delinda squealed in delight. "Cucumber Melon! My favorite!"

"That must have been hard to shop for." Danny remarked as Delinda looked over what exactly was in the basket.

"Man!" Mike shook his head, knowing that Danny would understand. "You don't even want to know how many names they've got for soap!"

"You could have always gone the Victoria's Secret route." Sam shrugged.

"Excuse me." Ed interrupted, hoping that he hadn't heard Sam right. "What did you say?"

"Oh, God." Mike whimpered, feeling like a good, old-fashioned Ed Deline ass kicking was coming his way.

"Moving on!" a firm Jillian exclaimed, glaring at Ed, who, as a result, remained where he sat. "Michael, this is to you from Mary."

"All right." Mike replied, taking the box from Jillian and opening it immediately. "New clothes!"

"I especially like the shirt on the bottom." Mary commented, winking at Danny, even though he appeared to have no clue what she was talking about.

"Really?" Mike said, lifting everything else so he could see it. When he caught sight of it, the African American man's smile faded and he looked at Mary. "You don't really expect me to wear that, do you?"

"Wear what?" a curious Ed asked.

"Yeah, Mike." Danny agreed, "Let's see."

"All right, all right." a reluctant Mike agreed, holding up a black t-shirt that read "Danny Cooler than Me" in white lettering. "See? Ha, ha, ha."

"I like it." Danny nodded in approval, exchanging high-fives with Mary as the girls and Ed simply laughed.

"I think that you need to wear that around the Montecito, Mikey." Ed suggested, stifling his laughter for a moment. "Just for one day."

"I'll pass on that, Mr. D." Mike replied, knowing he'd never live it down.

"Speaking of passing," Jillian said, grabbing another gift too big for the bag and handing it to Ed. "This is to you, Eddie, from Sam."

"Well, let's see here." Ed said, flashing a smile at the raven-haired woman nearby before turning his blue eyes back to the gift at hand. "A whole new set of golf clubs? Thanks, honey!"

"I also managed to talk Tiger Woods into letting you play a round with him next time he's in town," Sam grinned, "And I threw in an extra nine-iron."

"Oh, yeah?" Ed asked, "Why?"

"So you have something hit Danny and Mike with." a casual Sam shrugged.

"Nice." Ed said with a mischievous twinkle.

"Thanks, Sam." a sarcastic Danny said, wincing as the thought of what Ed could do with that golf club entered his brain.

"Yeah." Mike agreed.

"No prob." Sam giggled.

"And last, but certainly not least," Jillian announced, grabbing an envelope out of the bag. "Danny, this is from Delinda."

"I hope you like it." an excited Delinda grinned.

"Black Eyed Peas tickets!" Danny exclaimed, opening the envelope. "How'd you get these, Delinda? I thought that the concert was sold-out."

"Well, I know how much you like them," Delinda shrugged, "so I pulled some strings." Seeing a quizzical look on Sam's face, she decided to clarify. "Fergie gave me her number last time they were in town. Once I told her that the tickets were for Daddy's "hot assistant", she more than happy to help."

"Sweet." Danny smiled, getting up and hugging the blonde woman. "Thanks, Delinda."

"You're welcome." Delinda smile back.

"All right." Ed announced, getting to his feet himself. "If you would all follow me into the family room, I have a special Christmas surprise for all of you." He kissed Jillian on the cheek. "And that includes you."

"Really?" a surprised Jillian asked as the group filled into the nearby family room. To their collective befuddlement, the only thing different was the fact that a giant screen had been set-up as well as a laptop computer and a video camera. "Eddie?"

"Take a seat, take a seat." Ed encouraged as everyone sat down. Grinning from ear to ear, he walked over to the computer. "Now, we all know that I'm not so good with this technological crap, but hopefully, this will work." As Ed hit a few keys on the keyboard, the white screen dissolved into the image of a young black woman who smiled widely at the group.

"Happy Christmas, everybody!" she greeted with a giggle.

"NESSA!" Mike, Delinda, Danny, Mary and Sam all exclaimed, recognizing their former co-worker who had spent the last year or so in hiding.

"How?" a stunned Jillian whispered, looking up at her husband.

"A few contacts tracked her down for me." Ed explained, wiping a tear of happiness away from his wife's cheek. For a good part of her life, Nessa Holt had been like a second daughter to the Delines.

"I can't stay too long for safety reasons." Nessa explained, looking around at the different members of the group. It was clear from her voice that she missed them all as much as they missed her. "It really is good to see all of you again though!" Her eyes fell on Ed. "Are you ever going to shave those whiskers off, Ed? They only make you look older!"

"Yeah, yeah." Ed chuckled, rubbing the stubble on his chin.

"Well, I happen to like them, Nessa, so..." Jillian started.

"Doesn't matter what I think then." Nessa nodded, her voice cracking as she addressed the woman who had been a mother figure to her. "I sure do miss your baking, Jillian."

"I'll make a batch especially for you when you come home, dear." Jillian promised, wiping away more tears.

"I was so sorry to hear about your father, Danny." a sympathetic Nessa said, turning her gaze towards the former Marine.

"Thanks." an appreciative Danny nodded, "Miss having you around."

"Yeah." Mary agreed from where she sat next to him.

"I hope you're keeping Sam in line, Mary." Nessa replied, "God knows that someone has to."

"Hey!" Sam exclaimed, wiping something away from her face.

"Was that a tear?" a stunned Nessa asked.

"A speck of dust." Sam lied, shaking her head.

"Whatever." Nessa rolled her eyes, which soon took on an apologetic look as she noticed who Sam was sitting next to. "Mike..."

"Like Danny said," Mike shook his head, knowing that Nessa felt the urge to apologize to him for leaving when they were just starting to discover how they felt about each other. "We miss having you around, baby girl."

"Yeah." Nessa nodded before turning to Delinda, her surrogate sister. "Oh, my God. Dee!"

"I'm sorry." a bawling Delinda said through her tears. "I can't help it!" Mike wrapped his arm around the blonde-haired woman. "I miss you so much, Nessa!"

"Oh, God." Holt replied, covering her face with her hands. When she dropped them, the Montecito crew could see that she too had started bawling. "Now you've got me started! DEE!"

"Tell you what." Delinda sniffed, still holding back tears. "When you come back, I'll buy you as many new pairs of shoes as you want, okay?"

"Only if we go on a shopping bonanza." Nessa replied, nodding her head.

"Deal." Delinda agreed, wiping her eyes.

"God." Nessa sighed, wiping her own eyes. "I wish that I could stay longer, but I have to go. They're not sure how secure this connection is."

"Godspeed, Ness." Danny replied, hugging Mary close to him.

"Yeah." Mike said as Sam coughed to disguise a sob that escaped her.

"Take care of yourself, honey." Ed instructed, smiling at the screen.

"And say hi to your Dad and Adanna for us." Delinda chimed in.

"I will." Nessa promised with a sniffle before the screen faded to white once more.

* * *

"You sure that I can't wake them up and kick them all out?" a sleepy Ed asked, looking at the five now-sleeping bodies that surrounded him and his wife in the family room. 

"Only if you never want to go on another gondola ride." Jillian warned, raising her head momentarily and glaring at her husband. Sighing, she relaxed and rested it once more on his chest. "It's nice having a house full at Christmas."

"Yeah." Ed admitted with a nod. "Especially since it feels like, somewhere along the way, we've adopted a few kids the past few years." A chuckle escaped him. "Whether or not Danny and Mike are included in that depends on the day."

"Oh, Eddie." Jillian laughed, shaking her head. As her laugher subsided, she snuggled up to her husband and closed her eyes. "Merry Christmas."

"And to all, a good night." Ed agreed, reaching up and turning off the nearby light.

The End


End file.
